Eurovision 1968 was the 13th edition of the contest, and for this edition, the contest headed back to the United Kingdom. This was the third edition to be held in the nation, having hosted previously in 1960 and 1963. The show took place on the 6th of April at the Royal Albert Hall, and for the third time, Katie Boyle returned as the presenter of the show.
A total of 17 nations competed at this edition of the contest, with no new or returning nations. This edition of the contest was the first that was broadcast in colour. France, Germany, The Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Sweden and the United Kingdom broadcast the contest in colour, although the UK colour broadcast was an encore presentation the following day.
Here is the full list of participants:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Ireland
- Italy
- Luxembourg
- Monaco
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Portugal
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- United Kingdom
- Yugoslavia
There was just one returning artist in 1968, and that was French representative Isabelle Aubret. She previously participated in 1962, where she won the contest with ‘Un Premier Amour’.
Here are the competitors:
- Carlos Mendes – Verão (Portugal) 🇵🇹
- Ronnie Tober – Morgen (Netherlands) 🇳🇱
- Claude Lombard – Quand tu reviendras (Belgium)
- Karel Gott – Tausend Fenster (Austria) 🇦🇹
- Chris Baldo and Sophie Garel – Nous vivrons d’amour (Luxembourg) 🇱🇺
- Gianni Mascolo – Guardando il sole (Switzerland) 🇨ðŸ‡
- Line and Willy – À chacun sa chanson (Monaco) 🇲🇨
- Claes-Göran Hederström – Det börjar verka kärlek, banne mig (Sweden) 🇸🇪
- Kristina Hautala – Kun kello Käy (Finland) 🇫🇮
- Isabelle Aubret – La Source (France) 🇫🇷
- Sergio Endrigo – Marianne (Italy) 🇮🇹
- Cliff Richard – Congratulations (United Kingdom) 🇬🇧
- Odd Børre – Stress (Norway) 🇳🇴
- Pat McGuigan – Chance of a Lifetime (Ireland) 🇮🇪
- Massiel – La, La, La (Spain) 🇪🇸
- Wenche Myhre – Ein Hoch der Liebe (Germany) 🇩🇪
- Luci Capurso and Hamo Hajdarhodžić – Jedan dan (Yugoslavia)
The results were close, with Spain coming out on top with a lead of just one point! Coming in a close second was the United Kingdom, who many predicted to win the contest. In third place was former winner Isabelle Aubret who represented France. Watch the winning performance below: